"I was prepared to write that the Windows 8 interface was forcing unnecessary touchscreen controls on people who wouldn't appreciate them, particularly if they were simply grafted onto a traditional laptop. But the more I've used Windows 8, despite its faults, the more I've become convinced that touchscreens are the future - even vertical ones." I can see his point. I, too, have often felt the desire to touch regular and laptop displays, especially when doing things like photo and video.

That's what astounded me in using my iPad at work. It was literally years before someone mentioned that if I drag 4 fingers (not 3, not 5) up from the bottom of the screen, I'd find a row of recently launched icons.

I was supposed to discover that... how?

We've gone from command lines that required a manual, to GUIs that were entirely discoverable (even the keyboard shortcuts were clearly listed in the menus), back to magic gestures that require a manual. The Dummies book publishers must be ecstatic!